


to the world and to the both of us I confessed a longing I was dreaming of

by FriendlyNeighbourhoodTransguy01



Category: High Rollers DnD (Web Series)
Genre: Assassination Attempt(s), Bodyguard, Breakfast, But is mostly spoiler free, Courtship, F/F, First Dates, First Kiss, Flower Language, Flowers, Fluff and Hurt/Comfort, Found Family, Gift Giving, M/M, Major Character Injury, Miscommunication, Miscommunication is solved quickly, Nova and Lucius have a sibling relationship, Romance, Romantic Fluff, Romantic Gestures, Set after episode 97 Attack on Gusthaven, Shovel Talk, Team Dynamics, awkward first date
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-16
Updated: 2021-02-02
Packaged: 2021-03-14 07:22:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 12,498
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28791666
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FriendlyNeighbourhoodTransguy01/pseuds/FriendlyNeighbourhoodTransguy01
Summary: Dearest Captain,I apologise for the rushed nature of this correspondence, please pardon me the ungraceful language. I hope it finds you in good health, and in as light of spirits as these days allow.The purpose of my favor is to invite you to dine at my palace this evening. I understand that you are a busy man with many important duties, no doubt some more exciting than my offer, but it would mean the world to me to spend this evening in your delightful company.I will be awaiting your response.Affectionately yours, your prince, Arydan Irriscen-Peloni Starsorrow.Lucius receives an invitation for a romantic dinner with the sky prince, unfortunately he is an idiot and has no idea what it means.
Relationships: Lucius Virion-Elluin Elenasto/Arydan Starsorrow, Nova V'Ger/Thalia Whisperwind
Comments: 25
Kudos: 37





	1. Chapter 1

Lucius was keeping a close eye on the repairs being made to his ship. Not so close that the obnoxious sounds of hammering hurt his delicate head, but close enough that he could ensure his beloved Stormchaser was being taken good care of. He was watching a young gnome woman working a huge drill. She appeared to know what she was doing but Lucius did wish she'd be more careful as not to get dust and debris all over his deck. 

His observations were interrupted when an elven woman dressed in the royal colours approached him and handed him a small scroll tied with a light blue ribbon. He thanked her with a smile before reading. 

Dearest Captain,  
I apologise for the rushed nature of this correspondence, please pardon me the ungraceful language. I hope it finds you in good health, and in as light of spirits as these days allow.  
The purpose of my favor is to invite you to dine at my palace this evening. I understand that you are a busy man with many important duties, no doubt some more exciting than my offer, but it would mean the world to me to spend this evening in your delightful company.  
I will be awaiting your response.  
Affectionately yours, your prince, Arydan Irriscen-Peloni Starsorrow. 

Lucius read the letter over a couple of times before turning to the messenger who had been waiting silently for his response.  
"I shall have to ask my companions if they are available this evening." Lucius said finally.  
The woman frowned before answering, "I believe the Sky Prince's intentions were for just yourself to attend."  
"What?" Lucius tried to contain his offence, "Why are my companions not invited?"  
"I'm afraid I don't know sir, you would have to ask his highness that yourself."  
"I will!" Lucius huffed "You tell him I will be attending tonight, alone." Lucius folded his arms across his chest.  
"Very well sir." the woman sighed before turning on her heels and walking away.  
Lucius was left scowling to himself. Did the prince have a problem with his friends? Did he not deem them worthy of dining with him? In their previous meetings he had come across as very reasonable and down to earth for nobility. He had been so kind to his friends before now, maybe it had all been an act and he was actually just as stuck up and elitist as the rest. Obviously his traveling companions weren't entirely accustomed to life in high society, sometimes they would say or do the wrong thing at the wrong time, but they were good people! He thought Prince Arydan would have seen the good in them rather than judging them through the same shallow lens so many others had. Lucius let out a sigh of frustration. He didn't want it to come to this, but he would have to confront him at dinner that night. Anyone who had a problem with his friends had a problem with him, royalty or not.  
________________________

Lucius didn't tell his friends where he was going that evening. He didn't want to distress them by bringing up the Sky Prince's apparent prejudices. He slipped away to the palace alone.  
When he arrived a well dressed male elf servant attempted to take his coat but Lucius refused to part with it. He was led down a modestly decorated corridor up to a large wooden door.  
"His Highness is waiting for you just through this door sir."  
"Thank you." Lucius nodded politely.  
"Enjoy your evening, sir." the servant smiled to himself before leaving.  
Lucius looked around the corridor for some kind of reflective surface but there wasn’t one. He patted down his hair and flicked away imaginary specks of dust from his coat before pushing open the heavy wooden door. 

He was met by the sight of a decently sized dining room with a long table decorated with an array of flickering candles. At one end there were two places set opposite each other. Arydan himself appeared to have been pacing the room but had stopped on the spot when he heard the door opening.  
“Lucius!” He exclaimed, his face lighting up with joy. He took a few quick steps towards Lucius, before stopping abruptly. “I am delighted you could make it.” He said softly.  
“Your Highness.” Lucius bowed. Although he might be angry that the Prince didn’t include his friends in the invitation he wasn’t going to forget his manners just yet. He would give Arydan an opportunity to explain himself before he expressed his disappointment in his behaviour.  
“Lucius, please take a seat.” Prince Arydan pulled out one of the chairs. Lucius walked around the table and took the other seat. Arydan looked slightly dejected before sitting down in the chair he had pulled out.  
“My servant will be out with the food shortly. Would you like some wine?” Arydan asked with a smile.  
“Yes please, Your Highness.” Lucius replied.  
“Please, just call me Arydan.” he pulled a very ornate looking bottle from a bucket of ice on the table and began to pour the clear liquid into each of their glasses.  
“I hope this is to your taste. It is one of my favorites, I like to treat myself with a bottle on special occasions.”  
“What’s the occasion this time?” Lucius asked. He wondered if the prince had news, maybe a breakthrough with ending the wind barrons that had been terrorizing Gusthaven.  
Arydan blushed, “Dinner with you”  
“Oh.” Lucius looked confused.  
“Anyway, how are you Lucius? Are you enjoying being back in Gusthaven?” Arydan sipped his wine.  
“It is nice to see the city again yes, and I am well. Although there is one thing playing on my mind.” Lucius sighed.  
“Oh, and what is that?” Arydan's face filled with concern.  
Lucius thought for a moment before speaking “Is there a reason that you didn’t invite my companions this evening?”  
Arydan furrowed his brow in confusion.  
“You appeared to get on with them rather well at our last meeting, so why is it that tonight you only request my company?”  
The prince’s face traveled through a wide range of emotions before he rested his head in his hands.  
“Lucius, please forgive me.” He muttered into his hands after a painful silence “I am so sorry, I assumed my intentions were clear in my message. If not in the message, I assumed that my admiration for you was more than apparent…” He sighed, finally meeting Lucius’ eyes.  
Lucius looked bewildered.  
“I honestly can only apologise for this confusion. I foolishly assumed when you accepted my invite that you knew the nature of it.I was so excited too...”  
“The nature of what?” Lucius frowned.  
“This” Arydan waved his hand towards the plates and cutlery laid out between them, “Lucius, this was intended as courtship”  
Lucius’ mouth hung slightly agape and his eyes glossed over.

At that moment there was a brisk knock on the door.  
“That will be our food, are you okay if they come in?” Arydan asked softly.  
Lucius nodded, Arydan called for the servant to come in. He did so with a tray, he placed a large plate of food in front of each of them, asked if they needed anything else to which both men politely declined and then he left with a small bow. The whole time Arydan shot nervous glances in Lucius’ direction, who still appeared in a state of shock.  
“I would not hold it against you if you wished to leave” Arydan said once they were alone again.  
“I don’t want to leave” Lucius’ voice wavered.  
“I do feel like I have lured you here under false pretences.” Arydan said quietly, looking away.  
“You intended this to be a romantic dinner?” Lucius asked.  
The tips of Arydan’s ears turned pink, “Yes, I am very sorry that didn’t come across in my favor, I should have been more clear.”  
“No. No, It’s my fault, I misinterpreted it, I am sure you were perfectly clear, I’m just an idiot.” Lucius shook his head.  
“Don’t say that! That’s not at all true.” Arydan smiled kindly.  
“Can I stay? If you’ll have me, I’d like to continue the evening.” Lucius asked shyly.  
“It would be an honour.” His smile widened, “Would you like to forget all that miscommunication and start fresh?”  
“I’d like that, yes.” Lucius said softly. 

“Smoked sky salmon, with poached eggs on a bed of microgreens.” Arydan changed the subject, gesturing to their plates.  
Lucius looked at his place to see a generous serving of thinly sliced pink fish, two perfectly poached eggs, a pile of small green leaves and a slice of crusty bread, all arranged on the plate in a very aesthetically appealing way.  
“Looks delicious!” Lucius clapped his hands together.  
“I hope you enjoy it.” Arydan delicately picked up his cutlery and began eating.  
Lucius also began eating. He took care to hold his cutlery properly, cutting his food into tiny pieces and chewing very carefully. He was very conscious of the possibility of spilling the yolk, eating perhaps slower than he needed to.  
“It’s delicious, pass my compliments onto your chefs.” Lucius said.  
“They will be delighted to hear them. I’ll be honest with you, we spent a lot of time discussing what would be the right meal to impress you.” Arydan said bashfully.  
“You made the right choice.” Lucius took a sip from his glass “An excellent pairing with the wine too, you have exquisite taste Your Highness.”  
“Please Lucius, call me Arydan.”  
“My apologies, Arydan.'' His cheeks flushed.  
It felt so intimate calling the prince by his first name, but Lucius found that he liked it. Arydan gave a soft smile, the dim candlelight softening his angular features. Lucius was a little lightheaded, it felt surreal, being in the most romantic situation imaginable with the prince of Gusthaven, but it was real, and he was stunning, magnificent, ethereal. Lucius gently tapped the table to ground himself. 

“Are you alright Lucius?” Arydan reached across the table, placing his hand mere inches away from Lucius’ own.  
“I’m fine.” Lucius smiled, inching his own hand ever so slightly closer on the table. They met each other's eyes.  
“Tell me more of your adventures in your airship, the Stormchaser is it?” Arydan pulled his hand back to hold his wine glass.  
“Yes, an astounding ship with the most wonderful crew.” Lucius smiled proudly.  
“And a wonderful captain,” Arydan added, “please, tell me all about it.”  
Lucius began to talk about life on the Stormchaser, his day to day duties as captain, his crew, how good they all were at their respective jobs, how proud he was of all of them. At first he was hesitant to dominate the conversation, he didn’t want to bore the prince, but Arydan enthusiastically encouraged him, listening intently to everything Lucius had to say. 

Not long after they had finished eating, a servant came and took their plates away and then came back with small bowls of a sweet lemon sorbet for them each.  
“Another impressive choice.” Lucius said, bringing a dainty spoonful to his lips.  
“I am so glad you enjoy my choices. If you do have a favorite dish let me know, maybe next time could be your choice.” Arydan appeared to panic slightly as he realised what he was saying. “That is only if you would like there to be a next time, of course! Tonight has been extraordinary and it would be an absolute pleasure, a privilege, to be able to do this again with you…” He trailed off, looking to Lucius for reassurance.  
“The privilege would be mine, Arydan.” Lucius felt as if his heart might burst with joy, “I would love to do this again.”  
“Excellent!” Arydan exclaimed, “We could have another dinner, or alternatively, I'd love to show you the palace grounds, we could meet during the daytime and take a walk together.”  
“We could do both,” Lucius suggested.  
“A genius idea.” Arydan beamed.  
They sank into comfortable convocation about nothing in particular. The light dimmed as the candles decorating the table burnt down to stubs. 

They were interrupted by a knock on the door.  
“Come in.” Arydan called out, sitting up straighter.  
“Your Highness, I am sorry to interrupt but it's almost three o’clock.” Said the man at the door.  
“Is it really?” Arydan checked his pocket watch. “Oh, so it is. Thank you Elaceran.” Arydan waved his hand and the servant left.  
“I’m sorry Lucius, I had not realised it had gotten so late. I have duties to attend to at sunrise, none of which are anywhere near as enjoyable as spending time with you, but unfortunately they are unavoidable.” He sounded truly remorseful.  
“I understand, you should rest. I’ll make my leave.”  
“I’ll have my pegasus carriage take you, I would hate for you to be out walking alone at this time.” He said with genuine care and concern in his voice  
“Thank you.”  
Both men stood up and made their way out of the room, Arydan held the door for Lucius. When they reached the hallway he pointed Lucius in the direction of a comfortable lounge room, “Wait in there a moment, I will arrange your transport.”  
Lucius looked sad at the thought of leaving, despite having spent the last seven hours talking with the Prince.  
"And then I'll be right back to say goodbye." he added.  
Lucius smiled before stepping into the lounge. It was a medium sized room with a collection of comfortable yet stylish arm chairs, a couple of small bookshelves and a small table that looked perfect to rest a mug of tea on while reading. 

“The carriage will be outside for you in a moment.” Arydan said, slipping into the room.  
“Thank you again,” Lucius smiled, “This is a lovely lounge by the way.”  
“Thank you, It’s the smallest in the palace but it is my favorite.” Arydan chuckled “I’m sorry, that makes me sound rather immoderate, having an excess of lounges. I know with all the adventures you've been, and living on your ship, you probably find this sort of extravagance unnecessary, and it is really.” Arydan blushed slightly  
“I believe a palace is as a good a place for extravagance as any. I've always thought this was a beautiful building.” Lucius giggled  
“I would like to give you the full tour, one day.”  
“We’ll add it to the list.”  
“We will.” Arydan took a few steps closer, stopping only about a foot in front of Lucius, “I had a wonderful evening, Lucius.” His voice was gentle, almost a whisper.  
“So did I, Arydan.”  
“I hope to see you again soon, I understand you are busy, so am I, but I will do everything within my power to clear time for you.”  
“Please don’t feel the need to prioritise me over your duties.” Lucius felt the tips of his ears turning pink.  
“But spending time with you is much more pleasurable.” Arydan admitted.  
Lucius felt his blush deepen, and spread across his cheeks.  
“Anyway, I am sure your carriage will be ready by now, so I will say goodnight.” Arydan smiled, a slight sadness in his eyes.  
“Good night Arydan, rest well.” Lucius fidgeted with his hands at side, almost reaching out to take Arydan’s hand before deciding against it. He clasped his hands firmly behind his back to avoid further temptation.  
“You too Lucius.”  
They stood for a moment, neither wanting to move. Eventually Arydan went over to the door, and opened it, Lucius silently followed Arydan down the hallway towards the front door.  
“Goodbye.” Lucius nodded. He felt that now they were a little more out in the open in the foyer of the palace and a servant could walk by and hear their conversation at any time, he must act much more formally than they had been all evening.  
“Goodbye, have a safe journey.” Arydan had also returned to slightly more formal body language, but his pale blue eyes showed a caring warmth. The prince opened the huge wooden doors to the palace, allowing the colourful light of the cradle to wash over his face. It suited him just as much as the romantic candle light had. Lucius couldn’t help but glance back at him as he climbed into the carriage and it was pulled away.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lucius has an eventful breakfast with the team, him and Nova then go looking for the perfect flowers to give Arydan.

The following morning Lucius grabbed breakfast with his friends in one of Gusthaven’s cafes. They all sat at a table outside with a view of a bustling high street. Their table was stacked with a variety of delicious breakfast foods. Lucius was sleepily stirring sugar into his cup of tea when Aila gave him a hefty nudge in the arm, sending the spoon clattering to the ground.   
“Huh?” Lucius glanced up blearily.  
“When are you going to tell us where you were last night.” Aila asked with a smirk.   
Lucius froze.  
“You made a lot of noise going back to your quarters at four oclock in the morning.” Quill said around a beakful of toast.   
“I’m worried that you didn’t get a proper night's rest.” Sentry said, clutching onto her empty warm plate.   
“Am I the only one who didn’t hear Lucius coming in last night?” Nova said from behind her stack of pancakes.   
“I assumed all of Gusthaven did.” Aila impaled a sausage with her knife.   
“I really hope you were keeping safe, wherever you were!” Sentry fussed.   
“I was in good hands, don’t worry Sentry.” Lucius’ eyes didn’t move from his teacup.   
“Huh? Who were you with?” Nova bounced in her seat.   
“I don’t know if I can say.” Lucius glanced up a little nervously, his eyes darted around the busy cafe.   
“Could you say it in the messenger ring?” Quill suggested. 

“So I was at dinner with someone..” Lucius’ eyes glazed over as he spoke telepathically to the group.   
“Dinner doesn't usually finish in the early hours of the morning.” Aila pointed out.   
“We had some wonderful conversation.” Lucius failed to keep himself from blushing.   
“Who’s ‘we’?” Quill asked.  
Lucius giggled and squirmed slightly in his chair.   
“Oh good gods.” Aila groaned out loud, putting her head in her hands.   
Lucius looked down, his long blond hair hiding the embarrassed expression on his face.

“I’m dying to know who you were with.” Quill said through the messinger ring.   
“Promise me, this will stay between us, I doubt he wants all of Gusthaven knowing.” Lucius’ nervous voice projected into his friend’s minds.   
“So it’s a he..” Nova sounded as if she was trying to decode an extremely difficult riddle.   
“Yes, Sky Prince Arydan.” Lucius admitted bashfully .  
“Impressive, get in loverboy.” Aila gave Lucius what, in terms of Aila, passed for a gentle elbow in the side. Lucius assumed he would bruise.   
“Was it a romantic dinner?” Sentry asked cheerily.   
Lucius nodded.   
“WHAT?! Wait..” Nova sputtered out loud before remembering the messenger ring “Lucius, you went on a date with the prince?!”  
“I still can’t really believe it myself, It was all a bit surreal” Lucius giggled, totally forgetting the messenger ring himself as he nervously tucked his hair behind his ear.   
“You have to tell us how it was! Was it nice? Did you have fun? Did you ask him or - or did he ask you? What did you eat? Did- did he- did you kiss?” Nova babbled excitedly.   
Lucius shot her a scandalised look “A prince doesn't kiss on a first date, Nova!”   
“Of course not, he’s not a total floozy.” Quill did the aarakocra equivalent of a smirk.   
Aila burst into laughter, Lucius hid his face behind his hand.   
“Not even a kiss on the hand?” Nova pouted.   
Lucius’ face turned an even darker shade of pink. 

“I’m very happy for you Lucius, It’s okay if you don’t want to share every detail” Sentry placed a hand on Nova’s shoulder to prevent her from bouncing out of her chair with excitement.   
“If I’d been on a date with a prince I’d want to gush about every single romantic little detail with you guys.” Nova sighed dreamily.   
“It was very romantic.” Lucius admitted under his breath.  
“Were there candles?” Nova asked.  
“Lots of candles.” Lucius smiled dopily to himself, remembering how unbelievably handsome Arydan had looked in the soft light.   
“Did he give you flowers?” Nova’s eyes were growing wider and wider by the second.   
“No.” Lucius shook his head.   
“Did you give him flowers?” Nova asked.   
“Do you think I should have?” Lucius looked worried.   
“If I was going on a date I would, but I don’t suppose you have to, it’s just nice.” Nova furrowed her brow.   
Lucius didn’t want to tell his friends about the rocky start the dinner had, they would think him an idiot for misinterpreting the invite. “I just didn’t think to, I will get him some next time.”   
“Next time?!” Nova’s fork clattered to the floor.  
Sentry ducked under the table, and grabbed it. As she came up, she knocked her head on the table, wobbling the entire thing and spilling a few drinks. Sheepishly she emerged, and began cleaning it up, before wiping the fork on a napkin and placing it back on Nova’s plate. 

“We spoke about a few ideas of other things we would like to do together.” Lucius wondered how long it would be until he saw the prince again. He hoped it would be soon but he suspected that with both of their busy schedules it will be hard to arrange a meeting.   
“Like what? When?” Nova began bouncing again.   
“I don’t imagine it will be any time soon, he’s a very busy man, but he mentioned a walk around the palace grounds, that sounds nice.” Lucius felt his blush that had only just subsided begin to return.   
“That does sound lovely.” Nova sighed, resting her head on her hands with a wistful expression. 

At that moment an elven woman that now Lucius now recognised as the royal emissary approached their table.   
“Excuse me ladies and gentleman, I have a message for Captain Elenasto.” She handed him a scroll.   
Lucius held it close to his chest and turned away from the rest of the table as he unraveled and read it.

My dearest Captain,   
My apologies if I come across too eager, but last night was beyond perfect and I feel as though I might combust if I do not see you again soon.   
Luckily I have found a small gap in my schedule this afternoon between the hours of three and five, and I can not think of a better way to spend them than with you.   
If you are otherwise occupied please feel free to ignore this message, I will find you some other time with notice given more in advance. Yet, if you are to come, I will be waiting in the gazebo in the palace grounds in anticipation of your arrival.   
Adoringly yours, your prince, Arydan Irriscen-Peloni Starsorrow.

As he was reading he heard the scraping of Nova’s chair as she attempted to get up and sneak a peek at the letter, followed by the thud of Sentry gently pulling her back into her seat.   
“Adoringly yours!” Nova squeaked  
Lucius shoved the letter into his coat “Nova! It’s very impolite to read over someone's shoulder!”   
“I’m sorry Lucius, I only caught a bit of it.” Nova pouted.   
“It started off with ‘my dearest captain’ too.” Quill piped up.   
“He’s yours, your his! That’s adorable.” Nova grinned.   
“That’s just how you speak in letters, Nova.” Lucius said defensively.   
“That’s not how I speak to anyone.” Aila grumbled.   
“He meant the general you.” Sentry said simply.  
The emissary cleared her throat.   
Lucius turned to her, “Oh, sorry. Tell Ary- tell His Highness that I will be attending, yes.”  
She nodded to him before briskly walking away. 

“So you're seeing him again this afternoon?” Quill said teasingly.   
“That’s wonderful!” Sentry clapped her hands.   
Nova began to babble excitedly, “What flowers are you getting him? What are you going to wear? Will you kiss him this time?”   
“Oh Siaska! What am I going to wear?!” Worry dominated Lucius’ face.   
“I feel like I’m at a little girl’s sleepover.” Aila groaned.   
“Do you want me to help you get ready?” Nova asked.  
“Could you? I don’t really have any experience in this area.” Lucius looked bashful.  
“Neither do I, but I’ve read a few books about it.” Nova babbled.  
“Ew.” muttered Quill.   
“Nothing… raunchy, just non-fiction about the language of flowers and the science behind attraction and stuff” Nova babbled, her cheeks turning purple.   
“I think that’s worse” grumbled Aila.   
“I would appreciate the help, yes, thank you Nova.” 

Lucius really wanted the date to go well, although most of last night was a surreal blur he knew it was the most fun he had had in awhile. Arydan was charming and kind and incredibly easy to talk to. Lucius could Imagine spending a couple of hours with him walking around the grand gardens, engaging in pleasant conversation, breathing in the richly fresh and comfortingly warm Guesthaven air. Maybe this time he would be brave enough to reach across that invisible line and take Arydan’s hand in his own, or perhaps the prince would be one to make that move. He wondered if the other man’s touch would feel soft and lingering or firm and purposeful. Maybe they could link arms as they walked through the gardens, admiring the beautiful nature together. 

“I think we’ve lost him lads” Alias voice cut through his wishful daydream 

The group finished up their food, Sentry neatly stacked up their dirty plates and bowls. Quill enlarged his magical chest to pay for their food. As everyone was getting up to leave Nova tugged on Lucius’ coat sleeve.   
“Do you want to go shopping and get some flowers for your prince?” She smiled   
“Keep your voice down Nova, we don’t want all of Gusthaven gossiping about our courtship.”   
“Courtship.” Nova echoed dreamily.   
“But yes, we will go and get some flowers for him.” Lucius and Nova split from the rest of the group and made their way towards the shopping district. 

________________________

They found a small florist sandwiched between a shop selling antique furniture and a bookshop that Nova used every ounce of her self restraint not to make a beeline for. The inside of the florist was crammed with many narrow rows of high shelves stacked with flowers of every shape, size and colour imaginable. In the corner behind a small counter sat a bored looking half elf man who didn't look up from the magazine he was reading when the bell on the door chimed as Nova and Lucius entered. 

“You said you knew about flowers.” Lucius looked around the selection, a little daunted.   
“Yep, Uhhh so first you need to tell me-” She cut herself off, remembering the sensitive nature of what they were talking about, “First you need to make a list of everything you like about the prince, and also what you think about him, and everything you want to tell him but can’t say with words.” She said in the messenger ring, pacing slowly around the store looking at flowers in an attempt to not look too conspicuous.   
The tips of Lucius’ ears went pink, he began looking around the room, at the floor and at his shoes, everywhere but at Nova.   
“He’s very honourable,” Lucius finally said through the messenger ring “He’s honest, I know he has the people’s best interests in mind, he doesn't think he’s a particularly good leader but I can’t think of anyone more worthy of the throne. He is unbelievably kind and sympathetic, at our dinner I could feel him making an effort to make sure I was comfortable but never in an overbearing way, it just felt natural, like he truly cared. He’s strong-”  
“Hey Lucius,” Quill’s voice through the messenger ring cut Lucius off “I’m trying to organise all the gold in my massive secret chest and you are making me lose count.”   
“Yeah guys, I think I might throw up, do you have to do this over the messenger ring?” Aila chipped in.   
“Sorry.” Lucius apologized meekly. 

“This is why we should get more rings, so we can have even more private conversations.” Nova muttered out loud.   
“We should be alright speaking his outloud, as long as we don’t say his name.” said Lucius.   
“We could come up with a code name for him! What about pineapple?” Nova suggested   
“Pineapple doesn't suit him,” Lucius shook his head “Pineapple’s are pointy, he’s softer than that.”   
“We’ll workshop it later, right now we know who we are talking about. So tell me more about what you like about him.” Nova looked up at Lucius in anticipation.   
“Well I- I think he- I think he’s-he’s- I like his eyes.” Lucius blushed, It turned out gushing about Arydan was a lot harder outloud.   
“Okay…” Nova pondered “what colour are they?”   
Lucius thought for a moment “A kind of muted cyan.”   
“Huh?” Nova frowned   
“Blue.” Lucius said “Light blue, like the sky.”   
“That's adorable!” Nova blushed “Anyway, so the thing about flowers is that different kinds of flowers can mean different things when you give them to someone so you have to be careful because you don’t want to accidentally say the wrong thing.” She babbled   
Lucius frowned, it never occurred to him that he could accidentally offend Arydan by giving him the wrong kind of flowers.   
“Don’t worry though,” Nova continued, “I know what i’m doing, I read a book on it when I-” Nova cut herself off, suddenly turning bright purple.   
“When you what?” Lucius pried   
“When we met - when we got back from astral space.” Nova blustered nervously, “I did some reading, but then I gave up on the idea because she really doesn't seem like the type to appreciate flowers. But I’m glad I get to use this knowledge now with you!” she tugged Lucius’ sleeve and pulled him towards a stand full of round flowers with layers of petals. “These are camellias, the pink ones will tell him that you are yearning for him, the white ones will let him know that you think he’s cute-”   
“You should get Thalia flowers too.” Lucius blurted out.  
“No!” Nova flustered, but she looked a little sad, “She wouldn't like them, she’s not romantic like that.”   
“She would like them if they were from you!” Lucius insisted.   
“Maybe…” Nova mumbled, her eyes darted around the room, looking for a distraction “These are Asters.” she picked up a small vase of delicate purple flowers from a shelf “They symbolize love, dantiness and trust, I think they’re very you.” she babbled.   
Lucius nodded encouragingly.   
“Lavender smells lovely” She picked up a small bunch of another purple flower, “It means happiness, love, devotion, and peace. It can also mean distrust, but in the context of putting it with other flowers that mean positive things it won’t.”  
“Also it’s very pretty, I like the purple theme.”   
“Okay, purple purple purple!” Nova looked around the room “A purple Lilac means first love, a purple rose means love at first sight,”   
“That’s delightful!” Lucius clapped his hands together, he enjoyed when Nova talked about her interests, even if most of the time he didn’t understand a lot of the words she said. “Maybe we would throw some green and white in the bunch that could look nice” he suggested “These are beautiful.” He pointed towards some a tall bunch of lush green leaves   
“Those are fern leaves, they symbolise magic, confidence, and shelter.” Nova informed him   
“I like that,” he smiled.   
Nova smiled and picked up a couple of the healthiest looking ferns.   
“These are pretty too” he pointed at some small bell shaped white flowers.   
“Lily of the valley, they symbolise things like sweetness and humility and happiness and trust.”   
“I like that too.” he gathered a small handful up. Then he pointed towards some small flowers with spurred purple petals. “Those are very pretty”  
“Oh no!” Nova gasped “Those are Aquilegias they represent deceived lovers, ingratitude, and faithlessness, so that’s a bad choice, that could ruin the whole message!” 

Once they had selected what they wanted they made their way towards the counter. The florist arranged them into an elegant bouquet tied with a purple ribbon. Just as they were about to pay Nova dashed off before very quickly returning holding a single light pink rose. She placed it on the counter, her face beginning to turn purple.   
“I’ll take this too please.” She blustered.   
Once she had paid for it she carefully but quickly found a place for it in her satchel. 

“What does the pink rose mean?” Lucius asked as they walked through the bustling streets of Gusthaven's shopping district.   
“It’s uh-” She began looking around nervously, everywhere but at Lucius “It means a lot of things, it’s kind and compassionate and joyous and delicate, roses are obviously very- well they- they’re romantic. Red roses mean I love you, pink roses don’t mean I love you.” She babbled.  
“It’s like a light ‘I love you’, pastel ‘I love you’.” Lucius suggested.   
“Yeah.” Nova smiled nervously. It was nearing midday so the streets were getting very busy. Nova grabbed onto Lucius’ hand so they didn’t get separated as they explored the narrow streets.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for all the comments and kudos on the last chapter, remember to keep it up with this one! 
> 
> Thanks to my boyfriend and the wikipedia page on flower language for helping me write this one.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Another date, and Arydan get's a surprise visit in the middle of the night.

Prince Arydan paced around in circles on the polished wooden floor of a grand gazebo with ivy twisting up and down it’s support beams. He stopped in front of a small table and moved the milk jug of a tea set an inch closer to the sugar tray, pondered for a second before moving it back. As he was doing so he noticed that his gloved hands were shaking a little. He chuckled under his breath, it was embarrassing how he was so nervous to be seeing someone he’d essentially known his whole life. 

As a teen Arydan had often watched the sky jousters practicing, he admired many of them for their talent and physiques, but Lucius’ beauty had always stood out to him. Arydan knew he had spent a little too much time glancing across event halls and meeting rooms to admire his golden hair, strong profile, and striking eyes whenever their fathers had forced them to make appearances.   
He didn't want to recall the brief period when Lucius was believed to be dead. Although circumstances had gotten in the way of them ever being close, when he heard the news he couldn't help but feel a pang of remorse at never getting to know him.   
Then he came back.   
When he first returned to Gusthaven, Lucius was naturally devastated over the death of his family, but after a while it became apparent how much Lucius had grown during his travels in the lowlands. He carried himself differently now, with a confidence and strength that he’d never seen in the man before. Then he became the captain of an airship and left to go on more adventures, something that Arydan found incredibly admirable, and, if he was to be honest with himself, captivating.   
Since then he had done more courageous and influential acts than Arydan could even fathom. He had quickly become one of the most well travelled, worldly, and cultured people, as well as talented and most powerful sorcerers, that Arydan had ever known.  
Frankly he felt as if Lucius was beyond his reach, but he had still managed to pluck up the courage to begin courting him. Despite the slight miscommunication at the beginning, he’d like to think that the relationship was going well.   
At the dinner last night the conversation had come so naturally, they had talked and talked until they had lost track of time. The stories that Lucius told were some of the most thrilling he had ever heard. When he spoke to Lucius he felt listened to, understood, and as if he could speak his mind without fear of judgement. Every time he had made Lucius laugh it sounded like the most beautiful music he’d ever heard- 

His thoughts were interrupted by a familiar pecking at the tip of his ear demanding his attention.   
“Hello there Malachai.” He whispered to the star owl who had now perched on his shoulder and was continuing to affectionately bite him. “Don’t get jealous, you’ll always be my favourite boy.” He whispered, giving the bird a gentle scratch on the top of his head. Malachai gave a chirp of appreciation and nuzzled into his hand.   
“Good boy.” Arydan cooed.   
Malachai let out a cheerful whistle.  
“Beautiful boy.” Arydan said in an adoring tone as he gently ruffled the bird's silvery white feathers. Suddenly he heard the sound of boots coming up the gazebo’s marble steps. He whipped around, pulling a startled squawk from Malachai.   
“Lucius!” Arydan tried his hardest to act as if he hadn't been caught off guard by the very man he was daydreaming about. Despite inviting him to meet him here in this very place, at this very time, he was still pleasantly surprised he actually showed up.   
"Arydan." Lucius smiled as he made his way towards him.  
The warm glow of the sun cast a halo of light onto his golden hair made him look... breathtaking. Angelic. He carried a bouquet of delicate purple and white flowers surrounded with green fern leaves and tied in a neat purple ribbon. 

"I am delighted to see you, Lucius." By now Arydan had composed himself, Malachai hopped onto a nearby railing and began preening himself.   
"It's good to see you too." Lucius stopped once he was within arms reach, "I brought you these, just a little something. Sorry it's not more, it should be more, really. It's fine if you don't like them, I don't mind, I just thought I'd bring you a gift. A tiny gift." Lucius blushed as he thrust out the hand holding the flowers.   
Arydan took them gently. The bouquet was beautifully arranged and smelt wonderfully sweet.   
"They are lovely, thank you so much." Arydan smiled.   
“Nova helped me pick them out.” Lucius looked a little panicked. “I hope you don’t mind that I told my friends about our courtship, I only told the four of them. I would trust them with my life, I know they won’t tell anyone else.”  
“Lucius, it's fine.” Arydan smiled reassuringly, “I am glad you have friends that you can confide in, please don’t feel like you have to keep anything from them, and pass my thanks onto Miss V’Ger.” Arydan made his way over to the table, and placed his flowers down gently. He didn't want to have to discuss the politics behind whether or not they should make their relationship public, but he supposed they would have to.

“Would you like some tea, Lucius?” He picked up the teapot.   
“Yes please.” Lucius nodded.   
Arydan began pouring tea into two small metallic cups “Please don’t think that I am in anyway trying to keep our relationship in the dark, If it were solely up to me I would let all of Aerois know-” Arydan stopped himself quickly before he began spilling his guts to Lucius about the depths of his feelings for him. “There are a lot of aspects to take into account. I hate to talk politics but I am painfully aware that publicly courting you- there will be some traditionalists who might- who will not approve. I would hate to inadvertently put a target on your back. I need you to know that if even one bad word against you was published I would not hesitate to exile whoever was responsible,” Arydan looked deadly serious as he spoke, “But these are dangerous times we live in, and if any harm was to come to you because of your connection to me, I would never forgive myself.” He was trying to keep calm but the thought of being in any way responsible for Lucius getting hurt upset him deeply. 

“Do you take sugar?” He asked, focusing on the tea he was making as a way of grounding himself.   
“Yes, just the one.” Lucius thought for a moment, “I know all too well what you're saying. There have been direct threats made against my companions’ and I’s loved ones. I can’t let anything happen to you.”   
“I am sorry to hear that Lucius.” Arydan stirred the sugar into his tea for a little too long as he thought, “We will keep it within our close circles for now. Once certain threats are gone, if you tolerate me for that long, I would like to share what we have with the public.” Arydan found himself blushing. He hoped Luicus didn’t mind his hope that their courtship would last and develop into something more.   
“That sounds delightful.” Lucius smiled.   
“Milk?” Arydan asked, hiding his smile that crept onto his face from the thought of Lucius sharing in his hopes for the future of their relationship.   
“Yes please.” Lucius nodded 

“Anyway, how was your morning?” Lucius clapped his hands together lightly.   
“It was extremely average, I had some rather dull meetings in which I got absolutely nothing done. I did complete some tedious paperwork though. What got me through it was the thought of getting to see you again.” Arydan admitted. “What about yourself?”   
“Oh-uh-I-uh.” Arydan took a moment to appreciate how sweet Lucius looked when he was flustered, “I, uh, had breakfast at a lovely little place in town with my friends, and then myself and Nova went shopping. We went to the florists and then we had a look around the tailors, I considered getting a new outfit for this afternoon but eventually decided against it.”   
Arydan put metal lids on top of their cups of tea and handed one to Lucius. “If you don’t mind me saying, you look exquisite, as you always do.”   
Lucius directed all of his attention towards his cup, but Arydan noticed the pink on the tips of his ears.   
“This is- this is an interesting container.” Lucius’ voice came out a little higher than usual.   
“Thank you.” Arydan chuckled, “They are a new trend here in Guesthaven, they are fitted with a few minor enchantments. They keep your drink at a warm temperature, and they are impossible to spill from.”   
Lucius took a sip of tea through the hole in the lid, “This is the perfect temperature!” His face lit up with genuine excitement, “I will have to get Sentry one of these, this is exactly the sort of thing she would love.”   
“You can keep that one if you wish.” Arydan smiled. “I mentioned liking tea in front of some of the nobles earlier in the season, and since then I have received over a dozen of these things as gifts.”   
“Thank you, you're very kind.” Lucius took another sip.   
“They are designed to make it easy to walk and drink at the same time, so if you like we can take our tea on a walk around the grounds.” Arydan suggested.   
“Yes please.” Lucius nodded. 

Arydan briefly considered taking Lucius’ arm, but that might be a little too forward. He instead made his way to Lucius’ right side, next to the hand he wasn't holding his cup with in the hope that Lucius might take it upon himself to make that move. The pair slowly began to descend the steps of the gazebo. They made their way along a stone path lined with neat flower beds of unnaturally vibrant and sweet smelling blue and silver flowers. Walking at a steady pace they took their time to take in the sights of the gardens and breath the clean fresh air, feeling the warm sun on their faces and enjoying the simple pleasure of each other's company. 

They passed a cluster of bountiful fruit trees, Malachai who had been following behind them perched on a branch. Arydan stopped walking, he reached up and picked a ripe and juicy looking peach.   
“I do have something I feel I must confess to you, Lucius.” Arydan admitted softly, handing the fruit to the other man.   
Lucius looked confused as he took it.   
“I did have a meeting scheduled for this afternoon, with a terribly dull group of merchants that I had been dreading for days. So I cancelled it.” Arydan looked a little embarrassed as he picked another peach from the tree, “I canceled it so I could spend time with you.”   
“I told you not to put me before your duties!” Lucius protested, but Arydan could see the delight creeping onto his face.   
“I am the prince, and I can do as I like.” Arydan gathered all his confidence into trying to sound convincing as he said that. It might have worked because Lucius blushed slightly. 

Arydan took a bite out of his peach.   
“These are delicious.” he commented.   
Lucius followed, taking a small mouthful and chewing carefully before smiling, “They are!”   
The two men stood for a moment in silence as they ate and sipped their tea. They took in the sights of the beautiful array of trees surrounding them. The ones nearest them all bore uniformly large and ripe peaches, a little further away they could see other fruits such as apples, lemons and figs. There were some trees that weren’t currently bearing fruit but instead flowering delicate pastel pink blossoms that occasionally fluttered to the ground in the constant warm breeze. Arydan’s eyes strayed to the man by his side, he watched as a single petal fluttered towards him and landed amongst the golden strands of his hair. Without thinking Arydan reached to pull it free. Lucius looked a little shocked at the sudden physical contact.   
“You had a petal in your hair.” Arydan quickly explained himself, the tips of his ears turning pink.  
“Thank you.” Lucius looked a little embarrassed.   
“My pleasure” Arydan smiled, transfixed for a moment by the striking beauty of the mismatched eyes he found himself looking into. Suddenly he realised he still had his hand in Lucius’ hair and hadn’t actually pulled the petal free. He swiftly remedied that, holding the petal in front of Lucius as proof.   
“It’s very pretty.” Lucius commented.   
“I can put it back if you like” Arydan chuckled. 

A disgruntled hoot from above pulled them out of the moment. Arydan dropped the petal and it fluttered slowly to the ground between them, as they looked up to see Malachai, his feathers ruffled, his wings spread wide and his head lowered.   
“Please allow me to apologize for my Malachai’s behaviour.” Arydan felt a little embarrassed that his bird was showing him up in front of Lucius. He was relieved when he heard Lucius giggle.   
“He’s alright, I don’t mind him.” Lucius was looking at the star owl with an adoring look on his face.   
“He can get a little protective of me at times,” Arydan admitted, “I’m sure he will warm to you eventually.”   
“I hope so, I have always wanted a star owl of my own.” Lucius watched Malachai slowly lower his wings, his eyes locked on Lucius.   
Arydan pocketed his empty cup and held out his arm.   
“Come Malachai,” He whistled, the bird obediently swooped down and landed on his arm. “You can pet him if you like.”   
“Are you sure? He might think I’m attempting to harm his prince and bite my fingers off.” Lucius joked but a hint of genuine concern showed in his face.   
“We know you would never harm me.” Arydan hadn’t meant to sound as sincere as he did.   
Lucius reached out a gloved hand and tentatively ran a finger down Malachai’s plush chest feathers. The star owl relaxed his body slightly, his ruffled feathers beginning to lie flat again.   
“Good boy” Arydan praised. 

They began their walk again, Malachai in flight just behind them. Once again the conversation flowed naturally. They found themselves laughing a lot. At one point Arydan found himself laughing so hard his ribs ached, and he couldn't even remember what it was that Lucius had said to cause it. All he knew was that he was the happiest he had felt in years.  
They eventually circled back around to the gazebo. Arydan reluctantly checked his pocket watch, the time had passed by so quickly but he knew how long the path they had taken took to walk, and he knew that he was now going to have to excuse himself from this moment of blissful respite with Lucius and return to the monotony of his work.

He took a deep sigh. “It has been a joy spending time with you, as always.”   
He picked up the bouquet that had been sitting on the small table in the Gazebo, one of the groundskeepers had placed it in a glass vase while they had been walking.   
“Likewise.” Lucius’ smiled an incredibly genuine and radiant smile.   
Arydan’s eyes drifted from the flowers to the man who had gifted them to him, suddenly struck by a deep and burning feeling of pure adoration. He wanted so badly to let him know the extent of his affection but he could’t find the words to express himself, so he just looked and hoped Lucius would read it from his face. Lucius looked back at him with those beautiful blue and orange eyes, there was a definite look of warmth and tenderness on his face, Arydan could only hope it ran half as deep as his own feelings did. 

“I hate saying goodbye to you.” He sighed again. “But I am afraid I have to, I just hope I don’t have to wait too long before seeing you again.”   
“I will be thinking of you.” Lucius said softly, taking a careful step closer.   
Arydan glanced down, gazing longingly at Lucius’ gloved hands. He gathered all the courage in his body and reached for Lucius’ right hand. It fit so naturally in his own as if they had been crafted specifically to do so. He held his hand softly, with as much care as if it were the most precious thing in the world. He heard Lucius’ breath catch in his throat. Despite them both wearing gloves he could still feel a hint of Lucius’ body heat as he brought his hand to his lips and placed a gentle kiss on the knuckle, so chaste his lips only just ghosted across the rich silk of Lucius’ gloves. Then he let go. He lifted his head to see Lucius’ mouth hung sight agape as the man stared in disbelief at the back of his own hand.  
“You are in my thoughts always Lucius.” There was a beat of silence as both men gathered themselves, “Goodbye”   
“Goodbye.” Lucius said quietly, his cheeks a deep red.  
“Feel free to continue looking around the grounds, and help yourself to fruit from the orchard.”   
“That would feel like stealing.” Lucius laughed softly.   
“You have the prince’s permission.” Arydan said.   
“Maybe you should write me a note in case I get caught.” Lucius suggested.  
“If it will make you feel more comfortable, I will put writing one at the top of my to-do list.”   
“Oh no, don’t do that, I’m sure you have much more important things to be doing!” a hint of panic crept into Lucius’ voice   
“There is nothing more important than you, Lucius.” Arydan gave him an assuring look. Their eyes met and there was a beat where neither said a word. 

“Anyway, I believe we were saying goodbye.” Lucius looked away first, the tips of his ears flushed pink.  
“I believe so yes.” Arydan chuckled “Goodbye.”   
“Goodbye.” Lucius let out a small giggle.  
Arydan smiled and bowed his head before turning and walking away. 

As he made his way back to the palace Arydan studied the bouquet in his hand. It was stunning, the delicate purple and white flowers reminded him of Lucius’ own elegant beauty. He brought it to his face and inhaled the sweet smell of lavender, one of his favorite flowers (Although the pink blossoms of peach trees were a strong competitor for that spot now). He remembered reading somewhere that lavenders were a symbol of devotion and love, he wondered if Lucius and Nova knew this when choosing the flowers. He decided he would research the meanings of the other flowers in the bouquet whenever he next managed to find some free time. 

________________________

Arydan laid in his bed that night struggling to focus on his trance. He rolled from his side onto his back and then to his other side. He rearranged the feather pillows beneath his head, kicked off his duvet and pulled it back over himself. His mind refused to be quiet. He had difficulty trancing ever since his father had died and he had taken over ruling Gusthaven. He spent hours each night tossing and turning, obsessing over if he had said and done the right things during the day and worrying about what he had lined up for him tomorrow. He had tried any and all available potions and spells to help rest his mind, some worked, but never for long. It had been getting worse too, these days the problems just kept piling up and so did the pressure to fix them. He often felt he couldn't breath under the intense weight of responsibility he held. It had started bleeding into the daytime too; these feelings of inadequacy would spontaneously creep up on him, sometimes so strongly that he struggled to breath.   
Recently the only time his mind had been free from the negative thoughts had been when he was with Lucius. Lucius was apparently the only person who could distract him for more than a few minutes, make him feel truly happy, make him smile until his cheeks hurt, make him feel like everything might turn out okay- 

There was a sudden thud out on his balcony. Arydan sat bolt upright in his bed. More rustling sounds came from the balcony. Momentarily frozen with fear, Arydan just stared at the curtains covering the door to his balcony with dread. Just as he started to come to his senses, realising he should be getting out of bed and fetching his greatsword the door slid open and in walked a tall figure dressed in a black cloak.  
“Moonstar!?” Arydan gasped, hastily pulling his duvet up to his neck.   
“At ease your highness, I could not be less interested in looking at you in your nightshirt” Moonstar’s smirk could be heard in the artificially deepened voice that came from behind her mask.   
“Could you not have come at any other time?” Arydan loosened his grip on his duvet slightly.   
“I am a very busy woman, you're lucky I managed to fit this visit in at all.” She was still standing in the dark corner of the room, practically blending into the shadow apart from the occasional glint of light reflecting off the polished surface of her mask. If Arydan hadn't been speaking with her regularly before this point the sight would be quite terrifying to him.   
“Am I?” He chuckled, trying to sound fearless. 

“Nice flowers.” Moonstar nodded towards the bouquet that now sat in a vase on his nightstand.   
“Thank you?” Arydan frowned, he never thought of the vigilante as the kind of person to appreciate horticulture but she was full of surprises.   
“A gift?” She asked,   
“Uh-yes they were actually” He found himself blushing   
Moonstar went dead silent for a moment before speaking “What are your intentions with my- mister- lord-” She hastily cleared her throat, “Lucius. With Lucius.”   
Arydan furrowed his brow “I’m afraid I don’t understand wha-”   
“If it’s the Elenasto fortune you're after I'm afraid you're too late. He blew it all on that airship of his.”   
“What on Aerois are you implying Moonstar?” Arydan squinted into the darkness in an attempt to get any kind of read on Moonstar’s body language.  
“What I’m saying is your intentions better be pure” There was a hint of threat in her voice.   
“Wait, are you giving me a ‘hurt him and I’ll hurt you’ speech?” He couldn't quite believe this was happening.   
There was another pause. “Yes” Moonstar finally said, almost sounding embarrassed. “And you better believe that I will, I don’t care that you're the Sky Prince” she snapped.   
“Okay.” Arydan almost laughed, “I have no intentions on hurting Lucius, trust me, I’d never dream of it.”   
“Good.”   
“What exactly is your relationship to Lucius?” Arydan frowned  
“Good evening, your highness.” She gave a bow before turning and leaping off of the balcony.   
Arydan sighed and got out of bed to relock his door. 

_______________________

Arydan had been staring at this same piece of paper work for almost an hour now. Every time he tried to read his exhausted brain refused to process any of the words. He was still thoroughly perplexed about last night. Why was Moonstar so invested in his relationship with Lucius? How well did Lucius and Moonstar know each other?   
He sighed, taking a long drink of his tea.   
There was the unmistakable boom of a thunderstone weapon and Arydan startled, sending his cup sprawling to the floor as the window behind his desk shattered. He reached out a hand towards his great sword but before he could grab it there was another deafening boom and Arydan felt a sudden red hot pain in his abdomen. His hand clasped around the hilt of his great sword, struggling to pull it in front of him in a defensive stance as blood began to pool through his shirt. A glance towards the window proved futile, his vision was blurring, going dark around the edges, and he wasn’t convinced he’d be able to see them without the interference. A third shot, this time hitting him in the thigh. His knees buckled and he grasped at his desk to try to steady himself, sending papers sprawling to the floor as he collapsed. He heard guards bursting through the door, but he spared them no mind, his last thoughts on Lucius as his consciousness slipped away.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I feel so evil with that cliffhanger, hehehehehe.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> While hanging out with Nova Lucius gets a worrying message and rushes to see his prince <3

“Nova, get down from there!” Lucius gasped running over to where Nova was perched on the railing of the Stormchaser, her face buried in a leather bound book almost the size of her own torso.   
“Huh?” She reluctantly looked up from her reading.  
“You could fall to your death!” Lucius gently took ahold of Nova’s arm.   
Nova peered behind her over the edge of the ship, “Lucius we’re grounded! There’s only a little drop. Ten feet at the most!”   
“That would still hurt.” Lucius huffed, not letting go of her arm.   
Nova sighed. She shook herself free of Lucius’ protective grasp, slid down from the railing and sat cross legged on the deck of the ship. Lucius squatted down beside her.   
“Did you do the thing?” Lucius whispered to her.   
“What?” Nova frowned, her eyes already locked back on the pages of her book, Lucius glanced over her shoulder to see a wall of tiny writing in a language he didn’t understand, or maybe it was just common in a strange font.   
“With Thalia.” He winked at her “Did you.. You know.”   
“What??” Nova looked up, her cheeks quickly turning a deep purple   
“Did you give her the rose you bought her.” Lucius whispered   
“Oh!” Nova laughed nervously “Yes. I, uhm, I did do that.”   
“How did it go? What did she say?” Lucius smiled excitedly at her.  
Nova brought her book back up to cover her face, “I don’t know.” she mumbled into the pages.  
Lucius peeked over her book at her, “What do you mean you don’t know?”   
Nova began to babble nervously, looking away, “I meant to give it to her! I was going to, I was there. But, I, uh, I got nervous.” The rest of what she said came out in one rushed breath, “So I just turned invisible and left it in the cockpit!”  
“Oh, Nova.” Lucius shifted into a more comfortable sitting position and wrapped his arm around her shoulder. “That’s okay, I’m sure she still loved it, she probably knows it’s from you, she’s very clever!”   
Nova cuddled up against Lucius, “I don’t know if I want her to know it’s from me.” she mumbled. He patted her arm comfortingly.

Just as Lucius opened his mouth to respond he was interrupted by a voice in his head that he recognised as a sending spell.   
“Lord Elenasto, His Royal Highness the Sky Prince has been the victim of an assasination attempt and is gravely injured. He requests your presence immediately.”   
Lucius froze. His grip on Nova’s bicep tightened.   
“Lucius, ow.” Nova complained.  
“On my way.” He shot back his reply to the spell before letting go of Nova and jumping to his feet.   
“Lucius? Are you okay?” Nova sounded worried   
“Sorry Nova, something’s come up.” He called out, voice wavering.   
“What is it? What’s going on?” She jumped to her feet   
Without saying a word he took off at a sprint. He could hear Nova trying to follow behind him but he didn’t slow down. 

________________________

He made his way towards the palace as fast as his legs would take him. His vision began to blur as tears began stinging in his eyes. He found himself bumping into multiple people as he hurried through the crowded streets of Gusthaven, only briefly stopping to mutter an apology before rushing away. Perhaps it would have been quicker to travel by pegasus carriage but he couldn't bring himself to stop walking long enough to summon one.   
When he reached the palace gates he was met by a guard who said something to him but he couldn't process a word of it, his mind was totally fogged over with shock. He was led by more guards down a hallway. They stopped him in front of a door, one of the guards entered for a moment before returning and ushering him in.

Lucius instantly recognised the comfortable little lounge where he and Arydan had said goodbye to each other on their first evening of courtship. Arydan was reclined on a plush looking chaise lounge. He was the most casually dressed that Lucius had ever seen him, wearing a loosely done up billowy, cream shirt, leaving a small amount of pale skin on display. He had a thin knitted throw draped over his lap, covering tight black trousers. It was bizarre seeing him in so little layers, the prince almost seemed naked.  
“Lucius!” His face lit up at the sight of Lucius but he still looked exhausted, “My apologies I can’t get up to greet you, I am under strict instructions from my healers to stay sitting down, and I am afraid that if I disobey them they might burst in here and undo all the healing they gave me.” He gave a wavering smile.   
“No, please, stay seated.” Lucius let out a much needed deep breath, his stress beginning to subside now he had eyes on Arydan, “I came as fast as I could, are you okay? What happened?”  
“I’m fine, thank you for coming. Please take a seat and I’ll tell you what I know.” He carefully swung his legs to rest his house-shoe clad feet onto a foot stall and patted the space on the chaise lounge next to him.   
Lucius sat down carefully. The chair was so small that he couldn't help their thighs brushing together as he sat beside the prince.   
“Are you in pain?” Lucius asked in a concerned tone.  
“No, all the physical damage has been healed. I’m just very shaken up, and tired.” Arydan assured him. “I know you want to know what happened but I am afraid we don’t know exactly, my people are looking into it as we speak.”   
“An assaination attempt, right?” Lucius prompted   
“Yes.” Arydan sighed, he rested his head on the back of the chair, looking up at Lucius with tired eyes.   
“The wind barrons?” Lucius furrowed his brow.  
“Most likely.” Arydan nodded forlornly “They had an agent with a thunderstone weapon positioned on the roof of a nearby building with a view into my office. They shot through the window three times. Two hit me, one in the abdomen and one in the thigh. I tried to fight back but obviously I couldn't see, they were so far away, and a greatsword isn’t great for range anyway.” He almost chuckled.   
“That’s awful, I’m so sorry.” Lucius spoke softly.  
“Well luckily that all made quite a lot of noise, summoning my guards who quickly stabilized me.” He smiled faintly.   
“Well thank Siaska for them.” Lucius sighed.   
“Yes.” Arydan nodded. “Unfortunately they haven’t found the shooter yet, when they searched the roof there were signs of a fight but no one was there.”   
“A fight?” Lucius frowned.   
“Yes, we think someone apprehended the shooter before my people even got to them.”  
“Do you know who?”   
“Well the most likely answer is our friend Moonstar.”   
“Oh.” Lucius fell silent. 

Arydan shifted even closer, now their thighs were pressed together, their shoulders knocked against each other. Lucius felt warmth flood his face. He was hyper aware of their proximity and every little point of contact between them.   
“Forgive me” Arydan whispered softly “But security is high at the moment, my guards will be standing at the door and I do not want them to overhear anything-” He thought for a moment “Sensitive.”   
“I understand.” Lucius whispered back, tring to focus on the conversation and not the pleasantly warm feeling of Arydan’s body pressed so closely against his own.  
“Last night I received a visit from Moonstar.” Arydan’s face was so close to his own he could have individually counted each of his delicate long dark eyelashes. “She knows about our courtship, understandably, considering it is part of her job to know everything that’s going on in this city. I trust her not to gossip to anyone about it, but she did say something quite odd.”   
Lucius stayed silent but made a concerned face.   
“She is very concerned that I might break your heart.” Arydan chuckled softly.   
“Oh!” Lucius exclaimed, looking thoroughly confused.   
“She vaguely threatened me, but of course I assured her that I have no intention of hurting you. It was all a bit surreal though, she can be quite frightening.”   
“Uh-huh.” Lucius nodded, “Did she- did she say anything else?” Panic began to creep across Lucius’ face.   
“No, I tried to question her. I asked her what her relationship to you is, but she just jumped out of the window.” He chuckled again.   
“Oh, she does that, doesn't she?” Lucius squirmed slightly on the spot, accidentally pressing himself closer to Arydan in the process. The back of their hands briefly brushed against each other.   
“Are you okay, Lucius?” Arydan very softly placed a hand on Lucius’ bicep.   
Lucius froze at the sudden deliberate increased contact, “I uh- yes, I’m fine.” he muttered.   
“I can see you’re uncomfortable, If you don’t wish to talk about this we can change the topic, but if you can tell me I am dying to know what is going on between you and her.” Arydan whispered in a kindest of tones.   
“I’m sorry, I can’t tell you.” Lucius said sadly, “I don’t want to blow her cover.”   
“Understandable. I’ll drop it.” With a final reassuring squeeze. Arydan let go of Lucius’ arm and leant back slightly. 

“I have something else I wished to ask you.” Arydan spoke after a moment.   
“Yes?” Lucius asked, feeling more comfortable now the subject had moved away from Moonstar.   
“You probably have noticed that security around the palace is very high now”  
Lucius nodded.   
“I have been thinking it would be a good idea to hire myself a new personal bodyguard.”  
“Oh you’re right, that would be wise.”   
“I need someone very strong.” Arydan smiled slightly   
“Are you asking me if I know anyone suitable?” Lucius asked.   
“Do you?” He raised an eyebrow in amusement   
“My friend Aila is incredibly strong.” Lucius said without hesitation “Definitely one of the strongest people on Aerois, I don’t know if she’s looking for extra work at the moment but she would be great as a bodyguard I’m sure.”   
Arydan smiled foldy at Lucius, “Aila is a delightful woman.”   
Lucius beamed proudly at this.   
“I would definitely feel safe with her protecting me,” Arydan continued, “Although this job would require following me to several high profile formal events. I don’t think Aila would enjoy that very much, do you?”   
“No, she wouldn't like that at all.” Lucius shook his head, “Sentry would through, she’s almost as physically strong as Aila and she was literally designed to protect royalty! She would be perfect for the job.” Lucius smiled, enjoying this opportunity to brag about his friends.   
“Sentry is lovely too, but not who I had in mind.” Arydan once again looked at Lucius fondly.  
“Oh, okay. Well maybe you want someone with strong magical abilities instead, Quill is a genius, I’m pretty sure he’s the most powerful cleric on Aerois. he’s very close with H’esper, he has given him all sorts of unique abilities, he can see everything!”   
“That is very impressive-”   
“Or Nova, She is incredibly well read, I don’t think there is a single topic that she doesn't know about. Plus she has Tiangong who is super powerful”   
“All your friends are very impressive,” Arydan said, “but I was actually intending on asking you, Lucius.”  
Lucius looked shocked.   
“Only if you want to of course,” Arydan quickly added, “It is just a part time position, essentially while you are in Guesthaven and when you have nothing better to do, if you wouldn’t mind I’d appreciate your company.”   
“Oh.” Lucius furrowed his brow.  
Arydan very delicately placed his hand on top of Lucius’ and leaned in a little closer, dropping his voice to a whisper again. “Plus with all this extra security, It will be hard to get a moment alone with you, you acting as my personal body guard will help us get some privacy.”  
Lucius blushed, lowering his head to hide his face behind his long blond hair. “I am flattered but I honestly don’t know how good of a protector I would be”   
“Lucius, you are the most talented sorcerer I know, I can’t think of anyone who’s hands I’d feel safer in. The more I hear about your accomplishments the more in awe of your strength I become, you are beyond powerful.” Arydan said truthfully.   
Lucius’ blush grew deeper “Thank you” he whispered. 

Arydan slowly reached a hand up and very carefully tucked a strand of Lucius’ hair behind his ear, revealing his bashful expression then lovingly held the side of Lucius’ face. Arydan’s hands were large, fitting perfectly against Lucius’ cheek and his touch was gentle and warm. Lucius looked up at him through his long eyelashes. Lucius gradually grew at ease with the skin on skin contact, he sighed happily and leant into the touch.  
“Lucius.” Arydan whispered tenderly, breaking the comfortable silence. “When I got shot, I thought I was going to die” he admitted a little nervously.   
“Oh.” Lucius looked sad.  
“It’s okay.” Arydan reassured him, his thumb softly stroking Lucius’ cheek, “In that moment there was only one thought on my mind, one thing I regret never doing.”  
“What was it?” Lucius asked.   
“This.”   
Arydan took a deep breath before closing the small gap between them and pressing his Lips against Lucius’. The kiss was chaste and incredibly brief but when Arydan pulled away he felt accomplished beyond belief. The colour quickly drained from Lucius’ face, he clutched a hand to his chest and let out a shaky breath. He looked as if he might faint.   
“Lucius? Are you okay? Was that too much, I’m so sorry.” Arydan worried. He lent back, giving Lucius some space.   
Lucius’ eyes fluttered closed, he took several deep breaths before speaking “I’m sorry, it’s not your fault, it just caught me off guard.”  
‘No, I’m sorry, that was very forward of me, I should have asked first. I let my fleeting confidence get the best of me.“   
“I’m glad you did, it was nice.” A pink blush quickly returned to Lucius’ cheeks.

A sudden knock on the door caused the two men to jump away from each other. Arydan called for them to come in. Lucius hastily stood up, brushed imaginary creases out of his trousers and stood stiffly with his hands behind his back, trying his best to look natural. A serious looking guard opened the door and bowed deeply.   
“Sorry to interrupt your Highness, Lord Elenasto.”  
“It is quite alright.” Arydan said, his tone suddenly very different to when he was just talking to Lucius “Is there a problem?”  
“There are four people outside the palace asking for after Lord Elenasto.”  
“Oh shi-” Lucius clapped his hand over his mouth.   
“They seem very desperate to speak with you sir.”  
“That will be my friends, I kind of ran away from Nova without explaining myself when I got the message about your injury.” Lucius looked embarrassed.   
“Go see them, I’m sure they are worried about you.” Arydan looked towards Lucius, “If you are free tomorrow feel free to come by the palace and begin training for your new position.” Arydan smiled.   
“I’m looking forward to it.” Lucius smiled back. “Goodday your highness. Rest well.” Lucius bowed his head.   
“Good day.” Arydan nodded cordially.  
Lucius made his way out the room, stealing a final glance back at Arydan before hurrying to see his friends.

________________________

“I tried to follow you but I lost you in the docks, everyone in Gusthaven is so tall!” Nova babbled as she half walked half ran to keep stride with the group as they made their way back to the Stormchaser.   
“I’m very sorry, Nova. I panicked, It won’t happen again.” Lucius said, slowing his pace a little to account for Nova’s short legs.   
“She came running to me almost in tears shouting that you had gone missing.” Quill hopped up in between them.   
“He instantly used his eye and asked where you had gone.” Nova told Lucius.   
“I hadn’t gone far!” Lucius laughed.  
“Nova said you had just vanished! Anything could have happened to you!” Quill protested.   
“Nova was very worried about you.” Sentry chipped in.   
“I am sorry, Nova” Lucius looked remorseful.   
“I didn't word my question particularly well so I just saw you walking towards the palace, I didn’t see why” Quill admitted.   
“So we grabbed Aila and Sentry to come and find you.” Nova said.  
“At this point I did think to use the messinger ring to ask you what you were doing but I was also enjoying watching these ones tie themselves up in knots.” Aila laughed.   
“How were you so calm? Lucius could have been kidnapped?!” Nova stressed.   
“I assumed he was running off to see his boyfriend.” She shrugged.   
“She’s right isn’t she. How is he?” Nova tugged Lucius’ sleeve.   
“I’ll tell you all later.” he sighed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> They smooched!! I hope this helped you forgive me for the cliffhanger last time, everything is fine :)


End file.
